Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Brussels at Highest Terror Alert Level; U.S. on Edge After Paris Attacks; Kurdish Fighters Dug in About 20 Miles Away from Raqqa; Trump: New Jersey Muslims Cheered on 9/11; Mali Declares State of Emergency. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired November 23, 2015 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:01] CUOMO: A part of what resistance is to terrorists in the first place.

PEREIRA: Yes.

CUOMO: It's a horrible situation to be in, but they certainly hung together.

PEREIRA: They certainly did. All right. That's it for our show. Time now for "NEWSROOM" with Carol Costello.

Good morning.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Have a great day.

NEWSROOM starts now.

And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. A major European city on alert and under a partial lockdown. Brussels shuts down its subways, its schools and shopping malls amid warnings that an ISIS attack in the Belgium capital is imminent. Authorities launch more raids overnight in Belgium. 21 people arrested, but not Salah Abdeslam, a key suspect in the Paris attacks.

Paying respects at the concert hall, the site of the deadliest Paris massacre. Britain's prime minister stands shoulder to shoulder with France's president and says he wants his country to join in the airstrikes against Syria.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: On Friday, the United Nations unanimously backed action against ISIL in Syria and Iraq. And later this week, I will set out in parliament our comprehensive strategy for tackling ISIL.

I firmly support the action that President Hollande has taken to strike ISIL in Syria, and it's my firm conviction that Britain should do so, too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And this is only a test, at least for now. New York City carries out an anti-terror drill and security ratchets up at sporting events across the country as Americans relive the jitters of post 9/11.

But let's start in Brussels. A city at its highest security level in years and bracing for what officials have called an imminent threat.

CNN's senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is there with more for you. Hi, Fred.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Carol. Yes. There were some major raids that went on here in Brussels over the past 24 hours. Netting at least 21 suspects. And that was just announced here by the authorities a couple of hours ago. But I want to give you a little bit of the scene around here because there really is a military deployment here on the streets in full force. You can see these troop carriers here that have been around here for the better part of the day.

There are soldiers patrolling the streets. There's a lot of cops patrolling the streets as well. And as you've said, the subway is on lockdown. The schools are not open. Also, quite frankly, a lot of people not going to work. A lot of shops not opening, as well. Simply because on the one hand, people don't know what to do with their kids because the schools are closed, but also because they are, of course, afraid to go out because of the security situation here.

So it certainly is the case that this city is under at least a virtual, a de facto state of lockdown, as the manhunt continues for Salah Abdeslam. Of course, the raids that we've been seeing over the past couple of days also aimed at trying to catch him. The authorities believe he might be somewhere here in the greater Brussels area. But again, at this point in time, they say they're simply not sure. And that's why you're seeing so many raids in so many different places in Brussels but in other towns, as well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Frederik Pleitgen reporting live from Belgium this morning.

Just about an ago we learned that France has launched the first airstrikes from its newly deployed aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle. After the Paris attacks, France scrambled the ship to the eastern Mediterranean to better pound ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria.

In the meantime, President Obama welcomes France's president to the White House tomorrow to talk about the coalition to bring down ISIS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They're a bunch of killers with good social media. The most powerful tool we have to fight ISIL is to say that we're not afraid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: President Obama's tougher talk may not be resonating with many Americans. They are anxious, quite frankly. A new Pew survey shows just 19 percent of Americans trust their government always or most of the time. Disturbing when ISIS is threatening to strike here.

In a "Washington Post"-ABC poll taken after the terror attacks in Paris, 83 percent said they thought a terror attack in the United States was very likely or somewhat likely in the near future. Well, this is what it looked like in Atlanta last night. Heavily armed police protecting people from a dubious threat at Phillips Arena. The group Anonymous claiming ISIS was targeting a WWE event. The FBI found absolutely no evidence of that. Still, this show a fire power and defiant fans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They want us to hide behind the curtain in fear and with the little thing. I'm not going to let that happen. You know. We're a free country for a reason. Come out and do our thing whatever.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I pride myself on being a very vigilant person, so I'm being very cautious, which I'm -- any time I'm in a group setting, I'm cautious. More so now. Looking for exits, being completely honest, and just being aware of my surroundings at all time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. We were coming no matter what.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Paid good money for these tickets. We've got to, you know, make it. We're here.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:05:04] COSTELLO: Got to love their T-shirts. ISIS fears Ambrose. Of course Ambrose is a WWE fighter.

In the meantime in Chicago, a Southwest flight to Philadelphia was delayed because one passenger complained about being afraid to fly with two Palestinian men. Both men had been in the United States for 15 years. They were finally allowed on the flight after going through security again.

And here in New York, preparations are underway for Thursday's annual Macy's Day Thanksgiving Parade. Deborah Feyerick is here with more on the security angle. Good morning.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning there, Carol. And over the weekend, the NYPD had a big tactical drill with long guns, the assault rifles, because although, as the FBI director says, there's no sort of credible threat, a propaganda video is not credible intelligence, clearly, there is a threat, there's a warning. And so right now law enforcement really on high alert as to what they don't know but they're taking precautions in the meantime.

This drill that you're watching right now, you can see those long guns, those are assault rifles. Those rifles give police much better access, much better accuracy. They're stronger, clearly. They may not be the first ones to arrive on scene. It may be a police officer who's got a Gloc. But these are the people who are going to respond within minutes if there is some sort of an active shooter situation.

And the goal, as you see right here is these men and women, they move towards the sounds of gunfire. They have to neutralize the threat and neutralize it as quickly as possible because it takes just a couple of minutes for a gunman, a triggerman, to just keep shooting. And that's what they're trying to counter.

So it's very real, it's very serious, but the NYPD knows about it. They've planned this for a year. And so they're going to be ready. This is what we're seeing now, certainly here in New York, because of the fact it's a threat, is that there is an increased militarization. You cannot deny it because now they're not only up against possible active shooters, but they're up against people who may have some sort of a device like a suicide belt. That's what ISIS has threatened.

Again, the NYPD is saying we're here, we've got your back, we're going to do what we're trained to do, what we're supposed to do. But at the same time you've got to be cautious. And I'm sure over the weekend, you saw it, everybody was talking about an exit plan.

COSTELLO: Yes.

FEYERICK: OK. You walk into a theater, where's the exit door? How are you going to get out? Where is -- where are you going to --

COSTELLO: Not only that. I went to dinner at a very nice restaurant near the Museum of Natural History. And before I could go into the restaurant, I had reservations.

FEYERICK: Yes.

COSTELLO: They checked my bag. That's never happened to me in New York City, even after 9/11.

FEYERICK: Right. And that's the new paradigm. One of the NYPD officers I spoke to said, look, in America, we tend to check bags going out of malls. Now we're going to start checking bags going into malls. That is the new paradigm. We've got to be aware of that simply because you don't know who might walk in with something. It doesn't mean you have to exit in a climate of fear. What it does means is that you have to exist in a realistic climate.

COSTELLO: No, no, I didn't because I ran through Central Park and I saw a man running with an American flag. And I'm like, you go. It was awesome.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: Deborah Feyerick, thanks so much.

The Department of Homeland Security confirming five Syrian refugees have turned themselves in at the Texas border. Officials say the group, which includes a man, woman and child, were part of a family that arrived at a checkpoint in the city of Laredo on Friday. The group was handed over to immigration officials for processing. Authorities say records show no ties to any terror group.

This is the second time in one week a Syrian family has presented themselves at the Laredo entry point.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, as close as you can get to ISIS headquarters, CNN is there. Our exclusive report from the front lines in Syria, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:12:47] COSTELLO: Kurdish fighters in Syria have moved within sight of the ISIS stronghold of Raqqa. From their trenches about 20 miles away, they can see and hear the constant bombardment of the city by coalition airstrikes. U.S. special forces are giving them training and equipment as they prepare to advance.

Our CNN senior international correspondent Nick Paton Walsh traveled to the Kurdish front line to see the situation firsthand.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After Paris, the Sinai in the crosshairs is here, Raqqa. Lost in the haze, yet they can hear it. Loud thoughts. Heaviest at dusk.

Three days ago, says Bahoz, we saw 14 airstrikes suddenly hit just nearby. Another French said they started bombing. We'll do our best to avenge Paris.

He, like the other young Kurdish fighters here, have lost friends but say fighting ISIS is a duty for humanity rather than vengeance as they manned a series of trenches and outposts about 20 miles from the city.

(On camera): We have just heard the distant sounds of what could have been two airstrikes. But from where we're standing, here is the Kurdish front line and a trench dug as far as we can see. And then on this direction, flat open land until you reach the outskirts of Raqqa, the capital of ISIS' self-declared caliphate.

(Voice-over): Four Russian missiles hit Raqqa this day after they said, but otherwise it's the silence of stalemate in the desert. Weapons here are scant. This man carries the AK-47 of his friend who died eight months ago.

Out here in the flat open ground with ISIS in the next village, they still scorn ISIS' leaders and welcome help.

If French, Russian or American fighters, this commander says, come here to fight, we'll cooperate with them as we're all fighting to clear the area of ISIS with humanity.

ISIS left their mark on nearby Ayn al Issa as has the fight for it. Even the mosque littered with mines. (On camera): The silence here is breathtaking. This is directly the

road down to Raqqa. And you can just hear the complete absence of human life.

[09:15:06] (voice-over): There is little in victory left to fight for.

On the way out, we meet these guys that have looked much like white knights but that's what the Pentagon hopes they are. The Syrian Democratic Forces, getting American aid to explain they've secured the major defection of Sunni tribes inside Raqqa to fight ISIS.

"We weren't expecting this large number to join, but there are now 4,000 tribesmen," he says. "When we want to move, all are ready. We've already managed to sneak weapons to them. We're moving forwards."

Western leaders call this a global fight, but here, alone, do you feel the dust, death and determination.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: An amazing report. Nick Paton Walsh joins us live from Irbil, Iraq.

Nick, is -- does anyone know what's going on in Raqqa, Syria?

WALSH: Very little information about the impact of the strikes have been. We hear from activists, key parts of infrastructure, major large buildings are being hit, but questions are asked as to how these targets, after the U.S. being in the skies over the city for months, looking for targets to hit, how suddenly, what must be dozens became available in the last week or so.

Concerns about civilians, too, as well. We know that ISIS are preventing people from leaving. They have done that in the past. There have been suggestions that potentially some of the leadership have tried to leave.

But it's extraordinarily hard to work out the reaction on the ground. ISIS released videos that suggest civilian targets have, in fact, been struck and how much death be on that idea. But clashes have been occurring.

In the last 24 hours in the area you were seeing in that report, Ayn al-Issa, it seems as though, according to activists, ISIS may have launched an attack on those Kurdish positions, but also, coalition air strikes, four of them since, hitting in that area, too. You see the terrain. It's hard for either side to move forward in the area. But coalition air power can be making a difference in keeping ISIS back from those Kurdish trenches -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Nick Paton Walsh with some amazing reporting this morning -- thank you.

Many Americans fearing ISIS could strike at home. The pope recently said the Paris attacks are part of a, quote, "piecemeal World War III." But is it time for cool heads and not hot rhetoric? I'd say yes.

The mayor of New Jersey calls Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump shameful for saying American Muslims cheered as the Twin Towers came tumbling down on 9/11.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (via telephone): There were people that were cheering on the other side of the New Jersey where you have large Arab populations. They were cheering as the World Trade Center came down.

I know it might be not politically correct for you to talk about it, but there were people cheering as that building came, as those buildings came down. And that tells you something. It was well- covered at the time, George. Now, I know they don't like to talk about it, but it was well-covered at the time. There were people in New Jersey that were watching it, heavy Arab population.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: All right. So, no one can remember that. No one.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie can't remember it. Still, even he appeared to skirt the issue, telling a reporter on Sunday, quote, "I do not remember that. So it's not something that was part of my recollection. I think if it had happened, I would remember it. But, you know, there could be things I forget, too. I don't remember that, no."

To be clear, there are no reports, no reports, and no video that matches Trump's claims.

So, let's talk about this. CNN military analyst, Lieutenant General Mark Hertling is here. I'm also joined by CNN political commentator, Errol Louis. He's also a political anchor at New York 1 News.

Welcome to both of you.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning.

LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Good morning.

So, General Hertling, is such rhetoric helpful in the fight against ISIS?

HERTLING: Not at all, Carol. I can tell you from times when I was in combat and some politicians or some reporters would say things that we knew were contrary to the truth and, in fact, debilitating. Even when bad things do happen, the continual drum beat on something like this would cause challenges to the campaign plan. They certainly are. But especially when they're not truthful, and many reports have shown that the "New York Times" and both local television stations in the New Jersey areas have done an extensive scrub on this information. There are no indicators that this ever happened.

So, again, this is Mr. Trump stoking fear, which is not helpful to the commanders on the ground or those who are trying to execute a campaign plan against ISIS.

COSTELLO: But, Errol, even Chris Christie couldn't bring himself to definitively say, no, that's not true. Why?

LOUIS: You'd have to ask, of course, Governor Christie. But, you know, look, in the back of your mind, you might perhaps think, well, maybe there's video I don't know about. That's probably the kindest interpretation because Donald Trump is forceful about it. He says, thousands and thousands.

[09:20:01] He said on national television to George Stephanopoulos, it was well-reported at the time. Well, not by "The Newark Star Ledger," not by "The Washington Post," not by "The Associated Press". They all conducted investigations to try to figure out what, if anything, happened.

There was even a report, Carol, about a federal investigator going to look, because there were rumors going around this had happened. They couldn't substantiate it.

So, I mean, let's keep in mind, Donald Trump has a curious relationship to the truth. He's never renounced all of the birtherism that he went around spouting years ago and he has said other things that are plainly false. Things like, you know, John McCain wasn't a war hero. Well, you know, three years in captivity and so forth.

So, Donald Trump is not dealing in facts the way candidates normally do. He sort of gets away with murder, so to speak, because any other serious candidate, any other front runner for a nomination, anybody as sort of key to the whole process as he now has, because of the position he holds in the polls, would be held to serious account.

And I think all we can do is put forward that this is yet another case where he is saying something we know is not true.

COSTELLO: So, General, in the military, you deal in facts, correct?

HERTLING: Right.

COSTELLO: But people these days don't really want to believe facts or data from the government or from the FBI or from the police.

HERTLING: Yes.

COSTELLO: They just want to believe stuff out there that people say.

HERTLING: Well, that's the important piece of who we are and what we do. Depending on our values, trying to bring a little calm to all this, Carol, there are some things we can do, some things we shouldn't do.

One of the things we shouldn't do is stoke fears. We should approach this in a very measured way. Other governments are doing exactly that.

I think, as I said before, none of this is helpful to the campaign. In fact, it runs quite contrary to defeating ISIS. It plays into their dialogue and what they want people to believe, countries across the globe feel about them. This stokes the fear, but it also stokes their passion there, ISIS' passion, to deliver more horrible acts.

See, it just plays into their dialogue, saying, see what the West feels about it? They hate us all, so let's continue to attack. And again, all I'd say from a commander's perspective, from a military perspective, this is not helpful. It is in fact debilitating to what we're trying to do.

COSTELLO: I would suppose, Errol, that Mr. Trump would disagree and say what's needed now is tough talk, the toughest talk possible. So, is it that, or is it about Mr. Trump's desire to win? And he attracts a certain amount of the population that actually believes that, right?

LOUIS: Well, there's a certain portion of the population who will believe whatever he says because they like him. And, Carol, in the latest ABC/"Washington Post" poll, they -- he's not ranked highest for being trustworthy but he's in the lead. He's not rated highest for having the right kind of experience to run the government, but he's still in the lead.

So, there are people who like him for reasons other than he's honest and trustworthy and has right kind of experience. And, in fact, you know, he likes to promote his poll numbers. Let's look at all of the numbers. We know that he is very popular with people who don't have a college degree, far more so than with Republicans who do have a college degree.

So, there are lesser educated Republicans who seemed to love Donald Trump for reasons other than his honesty, for reasons other than his experience. You combine that with the birtherism, you know, these false statements he never renounced. That somehow the current president wasn't born in the United States. You know, you got just a very odd and unusual candidate who happens to be the Republican front runner.

COSTELLO: Errol Louis, General Mark Hertling -- thanks to both of you.

HERTLING: Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: You're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM: Mali in mourning and in a state of emergency after that deadly hotel attack. We'll have the latest from there, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [09:28:06] COSTELLO: Countries around the world are on high alert over terror fears. Brussels now in a maximum terror alert, citing a, quote, "serious and imminent threat." The French extending their state of emergency following the Paris attacks.

And in West Africa, Mali has declared a state of emergency in the wake of a deadly rampage on a luxury hotel. The United Nations says at least 22 people died in that siege.

CNN's David McKenzie has been talking with survivors. He joins me live from the capital.

Good morning.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Yes, some days after this horrible attack here at the Radisson Hotel behind me in Bamako, Mali, there have been incredible tales of survivor and people managing to barricade themselves in for hours, as they went through on that murderous rampage.

And I spoke to an American specialist from the Centers for Disease Control. She believes she was going to make it home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHIE FAZEKAS, CDC SPECIALIST: I e-mailed my husband and I just -- I said, "Something like, there is something going on, and I want you to know that I love you." And then when -- a few hours later when the fire down the hallway, I wrote another e-mail and said, "I do believe there are shooters here. If I don't make it, I want you to know I love you, and my family and my CDC. But I am coming home."

I do this because I love doing this work. Where we are in the world, we need to continue on.

MCKENZIE: You're committed to the work, no matter what?

FAZEKAS: No matter what. This wasn't about Mali, this was about what I call idiots.

MCKENZIE: When the signal came, what went through your head?

FAZEKAS: Oh, gosh, I'm so glad to see you guys. I don't know much French, but I could say merci beaucoup. Merci beaucoup. I said it down the hall and I'll say it again.

These guys, every one I mentioned, put their lived on the line for me that day. And I so appreciate that. And there is a group of people who didn't make it out, and my heart goes out to their families.